Chelsea swoop for Bosingwa
They may have lost this season's Premier League, but Avram Grant's Chelsea have won the first victory of next season, beating Man U and Liverpool to the signing of the Portuguese right back Jose Bosingwa. "Chelsea surprised both their rivals with the speed at which they completed the signing," writes Jeremy Wilson in the Daily Telegraph. "The £16.1m fee is the most that Roman Abramovich has sanctioned on a player since the signing of Andrei Shevchenko two years ago and, after spending £24m on Nicolas Anelka and Branislav Ivanovic in January, represents further evidence of a willingness to back Grant in the transfer market." (Daily Telegraph)
"I have friends who are at Chelsea and it's a club I feel I can improve at and grow as a player" Chelsea new-boy Jose Bosingwa explains his motivation behind moving to Stamford Bridge
Man U warn fans to miss Moscow
Mindful of the potential chaos on Sunday when hundreds of ticketless Manchester United fans turned up at the Wigan title decider, the club is warning supporters not to travel in hope to Moscow for next week's Champions League final. "Shortly after the final whistle at the JJB Stadium," reports the Guardian, "United fans inside the ground unlocked the emergency exits, thereby allowing up to 300 ticketless supporters congregated outside into the stadium to watch Sir Alex Ferguson's side being presented with the Premier League trophy. The sudden influx of supporters raised fears of what might happen should ticketless fans attempt to get into the game in Moscow." (Guardian)
Wembley in line for Euro final
All eyes will be on Moscow next week, but a decision yesterday by the Treasury to waive a tax claim on the earnings of footballers playing in the UK could mean the 2011 Champions League final will take place at Wembley Stadium. "Under current law," writes Martyn Ziegler in the Independent, "sports stars could be liable to pay tax on earnings from bonuses and endorsements if they appear at UK events even if they are based overseas. Uefa was unwilling to award the final to Wembley while the system still operated and the Treasury has now written to the FA to say it has awarded an exemption for the 2011 showpiece. A decision on the 2011 venue will be taken by European football's governing body in the autumn but it is expected it will award the final to Wembley." (Independent)
Advocaat eyes English position
Dick Advocaat, the Dutch manager who has taken Zenit St Petersburg to to the Uefa Cup final tomorrow at the City of Manchester stadium against his old team Rangers, is looking for a job in English football after his current posting comes to an end. "Football management has taken the 60-year-old to jobs in six countries but the Premier League has eluded him," writes Ewan Murray in the Guardian. "'England will still come," Advocaat insists. "It is strange that I haven't had an offer to work there before because I feel I have done well; I've been a champion in Scotland, Holland and Russia, won two Super Cups. But it will happen, definitely.'" (Guardian)
Ryan rules as player of year
If it took injury to propel Ryan Sidebottom into his second stint in the England team, it'll take a bulldozer to remove the latest Vodafone Player of the Year from it. "When Matthew Hoggard limped off with a pulled adductor muscle during the first Test at Lord's last year," writes Derek Pringle in the Daily Telegraph, "not even Nostradamus could have seen how that would lead to Ryan Sidebottom becoming so valuable to England with 53 wickets in the subsequent 12 Tests. But, 12 months on, the Lord's scoreboard was emphatic, emblazoning the accolade just as New Zealand, England's opponents here on Thursday, began their practice yesterday." (Guardian)
"I'm 30 and I've been around a long enough to have learned my game. That allows me to relax and not worry about the occasion" Ryan Sidebottom on the secret of his success
Collingwood cleared for Kiwis
Paul Collingwood, the England captain in the shorter forms of the game who many see as Michael Vaughan's heir apparent in the Test team, has come through an injury crisis and will play against the New Zealand tourists in the First Test on Thursday, his 30th consecutive Test match. "but he knows that the sequence is likely to end at some point during the summer. A third cortisone injection in his injured right shoulder will be his last and, if experience is a guide, then an operation will almost certainly follow in about two months," writes Richard Hobson in the Times. "He tore a muscle attempting a sharp, low catch off his own bowling during the one-day series in Sri Lanka seven months ago and discussed the option of surgery last Friday after having a scan. Given a recovery period of between three and six months he decided instead for another jab to delay what seems inevitable." (Times)
Murray is a happy Hamburger
It was a happier return yesterday to Hamburg for Andy Murray than his last time at the Masters tournament, when he beat Dmitry Tursunov 6-4, 6-1 in the first round for his fourth clay-court victory of the season. "It was all so different from last year," writes Richard Jago in the Guardian, "when he suffered a career-threatening wrist injury on a bleak and blustery outside court, a setback which made him miss the French Open and Wimbledon and from which he probably has still not entirely recovered. Now he was on a dry, finely sanded and fast centre court, he had an umbrella at the change of ends to shield him from the sun, and his performance was impressive without being spectacular." (Guardian)
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